South Florida Crime

WESTCHESTER (CBS4) – For the second time in less than a week, thieves used a truck to smash their way into a western Miami-Dade motorsports store and made off with pricey dirt bikes.

Early Tuesday morning the burglars cut through a fence and then used a pick up truck to smash through the back door of Gables Motorsports. Employees say a dozen dirt bikes were taken.

Last Friday, a truck was used to smash through the front door and two bikes were stolen. An employee told CBS4’s Natalia Zea that the store was also broken in to in January and eight dirt bikes were stolen.

“It’s a very bad situation. The last thing you want is for someone to start breaking into every other business around here,” said Modesto Bengochea who manages the auto body shop across the street.

Bengochea said he feels for the store’s owner and doesn’t like these criminals so close to his place.

“It’s obviously an organized gang. These are not kids trying to steal bikes, this is obviously people who are trying to export them or something,” said Bengochea.

Several other motorsports shops have been broken into by what may be the same group of organized crooks in the last several months.

Last February, security cameras outside Riva Motorsports in Southwest Dade caught the action as five men broke in and loaded five dirt bikes into a Ford F250. It was the same type of vehicle used in the latest break in.

Last October, a group was caught on camera stealing dirt bikes from Dos Reis Motorsports in Doral and Broward Motorsports in Fort Lauderdale on the same morning.

“I hope they get caught, I hope they get caught. It’s very hard to keep floating a business and do it legally, let alone hits like this. It could definitely put you out of business,” said Bengochea.

Last November police caught a 17-year-old riding one of the motorcycles stolen from Broward Motorsports. He was charged with grand theft of a vehicle.